Eyewear, such as reading glasses or sunglasses, are generally comprised of a frame having two respective lenses situated on opposing sides of a nose piece. The frame further comprises two temples extending away from the frame and lenses. Each of these temples are pivotally connected to the frame by a hinge which allows each temple to pivot between an open position wherein each temple is perpendicularly situated with reference to the frame, and a folded position wherein each temple is positioned in parallel with reference to the frame. The temples and nose piece support the frame and lenses on the head of the user when the temples are pivoted in an open position.
It is common for the user to consistently and temporarily remove their eyewear and pivot the temples into a closed folded position. The temporary removal of eyewear from the user's head is often accompanied by several drawbacks, including loss of the eyewear when the user fails to recall where the eyewear was temporarily placed; uncomfortable bouncing against the user's chest when the eyewear is folded against the neckline of the user's clothing or when the eyewear is hung around the user's neck with a lanyard or similar device; or damage to the eyewear when the eyewear is placed in the user's pocket or the when the eyewear falls from the user's neckline.
It is therefore desirable to integrate a device to the temple of the eyewear that secures the temples to one another, and preferably to other objects. Several prior art designs involve modification of the temple, an unsecured magnetic element that spins around the axis of the eyewear's temple, or permanent attachment of a device to the temple through the manufacture of the eyewear's temple. However, these prior art designs are cumbersome to mount, substantially alter the appearance of the eyewear, involve changes to the manufacturing specifications, or are only compatible with a very limited variety of temple sizes and designs.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,848,787 to Dietz, discloses a clasp for maintaining eyeglasses on clothing material by magnetic means. The magnetic clasps disclosed in Dietz, however, are only compatible with a specific wire temple design and temple diameter, and in some embodiments, require modification of the temple to accommodate the clasp. Moreover, the magnetized side of the clasp disclosed in Dietz is not secured to an external or internal side of the temple, thereby causing the magnetized side to freely rotate around the axis of the temple.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,172,283 to Asta, discloses a magnet attached to a pair of hinge rings that can be secured to the temples of eyeglasses that enables the user to affix the eyeglasses to articles of clothing worn by the user. The device disclosed by Asta, however, has a cumbersome appearance that does not blend with the aesthetic appearance of the temple to which the device is secured. Also, like Dietz, the magnet disclosed in Asta is also not secured to an external or internal side of the temple, thereby causing the magnet to freely rotate around the axis of the temple.
Therefore, in view of these disadvantages, there is a need in the art for an improved, system for securing eyewear to the user and other objects when the eyewear is not in use.